High School DxD: Ace of Blades
by TwistedViper20XX
Summary: Issei has rescued Rias from the Dimensional Gap, and Rossweisse has moved into the Hyodo home and taken her place as Rias' new Rook. But unbeknownst to the devils, a new player is moving into the field. Can they work together to prevent a universal cataclysm? Mostly OC story and content. Rated 'T' for intense combat, occasional strong language/profanity, and minor adult content.
1. A New Player Enters The Game!

_Chapter 1 (Takes place between Seasons 3 and 4 of the anime.)_

**===== Castle Black Rose XI =====**

She floated in the pool, her long, black hair stretched out above her head. She was naked, with the exception of a black rose with three pairs of wings mounted on a leather choker. Every now and then, a small wave would lick the edge of her ears. Other than that, the room was still, with soft music drifting in the air. She was at total peace. And she deserved it, as hard as she had been working to prevent a total apocalypse, at least as she envisioned it. She was in the middle of thinking about absolutely nothing when the door to the pool room opened.

"Forgive me, Lady Arceus." She heard the voice of Genjuko, her closest friend and servant. "I know you said you didn't wish to be disturbed…"

Arceus smirked silently. "And yet, here you are... I trust whatever you have to say is important enough to warrant the interruption."

"One of your recon units has returned ahead of schedule."

"Which one?"

"Kansai Squad."

Arceus did some quick thinking. _Kansai, Kansai, Kansai..._ She sat up with a start, almost falling below the water's surface. "Kansai's not due back until after the New Year."

"Which is why I'm here, letting you know they've returned."

"Where are they now?"

"Showering after their long trip. I told them you'd meet them on the seventh balcony in an hour."

"An hour? I don't need an hour to get ready to see members of my own household."

"I know that, milady. Which is why I waited 45 minutes to tell you."

Arceus looked towards the doorway. Genjuko wore that familiar self-assured smirk, the one that screamed without a sound, _I know you better than you give me credit for, milady._ She could do nothing but shake her head because she knew that to be the truth. The two had grown up together, and despite Arceus having ten blood siblings of her own, nobody was closer to her that the poor servant's daughter her father had adopted all those years ago.

She stood up, barely breaking the surface of the water. She bent over at the waist, letting her hair hang perilously close to the pool. With a snap, she stood straight up. Every bead of water flew from her naked skin and her hair wove itself into a neat simple braid ending right at her waist. She stepped onto the dry dock and walked towards the door. As she walked, a simple robe wove itself around her body, seemingly out of thin air. She and her ladyservant walked side by side to the balcony, where her recon unit awaited.

On the seventh floor of a massive castle, a balcony was filled with a light din. A dozen teenagers were enjoying such food and drink as they had not had in quite some time, their reconnaissance mission into the human realm lasting more than a year. They considered themselves lucky to find what they were looking for slightly halfway in, considering their assignment was meant to last two years. Their leader had found something she insisted was significant and worth their lady's immediate attention, however, so they packed up and traveled home during a school vacation, hoping to use it to cover their absence. Upon their return home, they had spoken with their lady's right hand, who advised them to gather on the balcony of the seventh floor in an hour. Their leader knew exactly what that meant: she was in her private bath and did not wish to be disturbed. The recon members thus took some time to clean up and put on clean clothes before gathering on the balcony, where a feast had been laid out for them: roasted meat, grilled vegetables and seafood, plenty of fresh fruit, tea and wine. They ate, drank, and conversed with other members of the house as they awaited Her Ladyship's arrival. Right on schedule, a woman in a simple silk robe with a black braid entered the balcony. Those who were sitting made to stand, but she quickly waved them off. "Lady Mother," the recon members greeted Arceus, with a sense of formality that showed the difference between them.

Her recon element was made up of half-humans she had sired, so while they were in fact her children, they would never be on the same level as Arceus and her purebred children.

Arceus herself, was a dragon.

The eleventh heir of the Black Rose clan of the Bronze Dragonflight, retired Auroch of Ages, and retired 3rd Legion Commander, to be more precise. So while she might love all of her children – and she had given birth to _hundreds_ over the years – they would never be considered more than servants due to their human blood. Which suited them just fine; they were treated like the family they were, despite the expectations to perform as servants. It suited Arceus just fine as well, for in her mind there was no better way to create a retinue of loyal servants than to give birth to them. They also made excellent spies in other realms, as their bio energy passed them off as mere humans, whereas a dragon might be sniffed out somehow.

As she greeted all of her children, the other difference between them became evident. She was at least a foot taller than the tallest member of her recon squad, who was exceptionally tall himself. In her human form, she stood seven feet and one inch tall, a height only the rarest of humans ever reached (certainly none that she had even mated with).

Finally, she found the child she had been looking for. An unassuming green-eyed girl, who probably wouldn't have stood out among a crowd except for her pink wire-framed glasses and twin shoulder-length brown pigtails. She was the daughter who had shown exceptional observational skills, and thus been chosen to lead this particular element. Daughter and mother embraced, and then the daughter produced a DVD from her bag. It looked to be from a children's show, which caused Arceus no lack of skepticism. It must have surely shown on her face, because the daughter said, "Just watch." So she pulled out her laptop and watched.

And watched... and watched... and watched. The more she watched, the bigger the glint in her eyes became. She couldn't believe it; no wonder her recon element had returned almost half a year early. This was _exactly_ what she had been looking for these last several decades.

"Lady Mother?" Her daughter's voice broke her concentration. Arceus didn't answer her, turning instead to her sister. "Genjuko, fetch me a scale."

"At once, milady." She strode off, while Arceus began waving her hands in the air. By the time Genjuko had returned, Arceus had drawn a holographic map in the air. She seemed focused on an area in the southwest, on the shore of a vast sea.

"A scale as you requested, Lady Arceus."

"Thank you, Lady Genjuko." She took the scale from her ladyservant and began rubbing her fingers across it. Light etched patterns into the scale... it was a message in Draconic. "Deliver this to my father," she commanded Genjuko. Genjuko read it, then asked, "What if he says no?"

"When has he _ever_ told me no?" Arceus laughed.

"Very well... as Your Ladyship commands." She set off to do her lady's bidding. Arceus then turned back to her daughter. "Kneel before me," she commanded. The young lady did as she was bid. Arceus stretched out her arms, and her robe began to twist and shape until it was a royal gown. She produced a round magical symbol – a clock with a rose, crossed swords, and the letter 'A' – and from it drew a ceremonial sword. "Let all who bear witness hear my words: by the powers vested in me by Arcturus, Lord Archon of the Black Rose clan; Malastrios, Auroch of Ages; and Her Grace, the Dragon Queen Alexstrasza, I hereby raise Aika Kiryuu to the rank of vassal, to hold court at Castle Whitesand. It shall belong to her, her children and their descendants, from now until the end of time."

Aika was stunned, at a complete loss for words. A clan vassal – human, dragon, hybrid or otherwise – was the same as being a lord or lady in her own right, except she was still governed by the clan she was vassal to. And a castle of her own, right on the sea? She had expected to be rewarded for a job well done, but this was beyond anything she might have expected. "Mother, I... I don't know what to say," she choked, fighting back tears.

"You have done me a greater service than you can possibly understand today," Arceus began to explain. "If I am to prevent a cataclysm, I will need as many allies as I can gather. And the more places I can find those allies, the better."

"Why not just try to talk to the Conclave?"

Arceus grimaced. "If what I fear comes to pass, the Dragon Queen herself will be of little help."

"Still, though... you think this pervert is going to help you when the most powerful dragons in the world won't?"

"That _pervert_ is possessed of a power beyond anything the council can dream of. Besides, if he is who you say he is, my other recon units have already reported on his skirmishes with the Chaos Brigade."

"Wait a minute, you already knew about him? Then what did you need me for?"

Arceus picked up the DVD case and scanned the back of the cover. "Because thanks to your efforts, now I know how to find him. I know how to determine if he and his clan are truly the allies I seek. And I know without a doubt, if I fail, all is lost."

**===== Osaka, Japan, several months later =====**

The place seemed ordinary enough. Just a small seaside café in Osaka. So why did he have to come all the way out here?

A salty sea breeze ruffled his dark brown hair. He couldn't help but be suspicious, most likely due to his nature as a fallen angel. His suspicions were only heightened when he spotted two heads of hair approaching from a block away: one fire-engine red, the other golden blond.

_All three of us in the same place... it's too dangerous. Could be a trap. _He wondered if the legions the three factions had set as sentries would be able to help in time if shit hit the fan. He had thought so when he received his invitation, he had thought so when he found out the other two leaders had received the same message, and he thought so now. Someone was trying to get their attention, but the only clue they had as to who that someone could be was an unfamiliar sigil: a bronze clock, with a black rose and crossed blades superimposed on it, topped off by a stylish letter 'A.'

In the month since they had received the invitation, the three faction leaders had run the symbol through every archive they could find and found absolutely nothing. At least it eliminated the possibility of coming from inside their ranks, but it did nothing to quiet their general unease. Finally, the three leaders and a lady met in front of the café.

"Zechs, Grayfia, Michael, good to see you."

"Well met, Azazel," said the golden-haired angel in a soft tone. "Any word on who our host is?"

"I think we're about to find out," said the firey-haired Zechs as he motioned toward the door of the café. A woman came outside, fairly inconspicuous except for her height. She bowed politely as she approached. "My lords Michael, Zechs and Azazel, I thank you all for coming all this way. My lady Arceus is anxious to meet you. Please, follow me."

_'Lady Arceus?' Is she talking about..._ A shudder ran up Azazel's spine as memories from a thousand years ago crept into his mind. He looked down at the sigil again. A clock, colored dark gold. Copper? Or was it really bronze? Then the black rose... _It can't be..._

Their guide led the three dignitaries through the bustling café to a room marked "Management." The room had a floor table with five place settings. The table was fairly large for just five people, but it was stacked with enough food and drink for at least twice that. On a wall next to the door was a large flat-screen TV, on which an episode of "The Grabbin' Dragon" was playing. The party removed their shoes and waited while the guide opened another door on the far side of the room. "Your Ladyship?"

"Are they here?"

"Yes, milady."

"Excellent." From the door came another woman, even taller than the first. "My lords, my lady," she made a point of deferring to Lady Grayfia, "I have the honor to introduce Her Ladyship Arceus, Eleventh Heir to the Black Rose Clan of the Bronze Dragonflight." She turned to face Arceus, bowed, and extended an arm toward their guests. "My lady, I have the honor of presenting the Archangel Michael; Lord Azazel, Governor-General of the Fallen Angels; and Devil King Lord Zechs Lucifer." Arceus bowed, and her guests did the same. "It is such an honor to finally meet all of you. This is my lieutenant, Genjuko." 'Lieutenant' was the title Arceus used for Genjuko in formal meetings such as this, to convey just how vital she was to her. "And who might you be?" she asked Grayfia.

"My name is Grayfia. I am Sir Zechs' wife."

"Ah, I was not aware you would be joining us." She waved her hand effortlessly, and five place settings became six. "Please, sit. Eat and drink as much as you all like, anything you like."

"Got any sake?" Azazel asked dryly.

"Of course. You think I'd forget even after all these years?" Arceus smirked, pouring two drinks from a tall white jar and passing one to Azazel. "_Kampai_!" she toasted, downing her drink and taking her seat. After the delegation had seated themselves around the table – Michael and Azazel to her right, Zechs and Grayfia to her left, and Genjuko directly across from her – she poured herself a glass of wine and motioned to the TV. "Gotta hand it to you three, you really knocked it out of the park with this. 'The Grabbin' Dragon...' couldn't have come up with better myself."

"You couldn't, and you didn't, so why don't you tell us why you really called us here? Certainly not to syndicate it to the human world?" Azazel asked bluntly.

Arceus grinned. "Now which one of you was smart enough to figure that out? Oh well, it makes no difference. You're here because I need your help. You're also here because you need my help, whether you know it or not."

"Forgive me, my lady, but why would _we_ need _your_ help?" asked Michael, somewhat incredulously.

"Well, I would call it Armageddon, but the Church already trademarked that so I'm just gonna go with the end of the world."

"The end of which world, and why should we be concerned about it?"

"Hmm... I forget, humans are really the only ones bound to any one world, right? When I say 'the end of the world,' what I really mean is the end of all existence. Think of anything, anywhere, anyone, that exists right now. If I fail in my mission, it ends. Doesn't matter what, where or who you're thinking of. It. All. Ends."

"What makes you say that?" inquired Zechs.

Arceus produced a small black binder from beneath her place at the table and passed it to Zechs. "By now I'm sure you're all familiar with a little group of hellraisers called the Chaos Brigade?"

Zechs opened the binder; it was a dossier on some high-ranking devils who made up the insurrectionist faction. He closed it shut just as quickly. "_That_ is a devil problem, and we devils will deal with it."

"Yeah, I kinda thought you might say that. And it's not that I don't trust you; it's just that you're wrong. Let me explain to you why. The Chaos Brigade is led by a renegade Void Dragon called Orphis. She wants to slay the Apocalypse Dragon and conquer the Dimensional Gap."

"Apocalypse Dragon... you must mean Great Red?"

"Precisely. Now, if Orphis accomplished that on her own, she would be executed as a traitor and that would be the end of it. But if she gets humans and devils involved, well... I guarantee you don't want to fight a war against thirteen different dragon flights."

The four emissaries nodded in silent agreement. Their own peace was new and tenuous at best, and the war amongst themselves had drastically reduced their numbers. Another war, this one against dragons, could see them wiped out completely.

"So what exactly is it you want us to do?" asked Michael.

"Since the ruling dragon council doesn't see me as anyone worth listening to in this matter, I have to operate alone. I'm looking for a small team within your factions to form an alliance with, to take down the Chaos Brigade and eventually apprehend Orphis."

"We're already fighting the Chaos Brigade at every opportunity. What good will one dragon do?"

"One dragon can do plenty good, so imagine what seven more can do."

"Eight dragons?"

"Merged with your sister's household, Sir Zechs, they could prove to be a powerful asset indeed," Michael mused.

"Very well," said Zechs. "But first, I would like to see your contingent in battle, to see exactly what they're capable of. Perhaps a friendly scrimmage battle against Rias and her family?"

Arceus' eyes narrowed. Her grin could not be contained. She picked up two small objects from the table and rolled them around in her hand. She held them up for the rest of the party to see; they were a pair of bishops from a chess set. "I had hoped you would suggest that."

* * *

**_A/N: Hey, this is TwistedViper20XX here. I've had it in mind to write an "Ace of Blades" OC fanfic for a while now, and now that I've finally found an anime universe she fits into I'm finally getting started. Please bear with me while I get the hang of formatting, document submission, etc. My goal is to put out a chapter every month *at a bare minimum.* Hope you all enjoy, and all feedback and constructive criticism are welcomed. Until then, this is TwistedViper20XX, signing off._**


	2. The Playing Field Is Set!

_Chapter 2_

**===== Castle Black Rose XI =====**

Two weeks after Arceus met with the leaders of the three Earth underworld factions, she held a massive feast at her castle. She chose to disclose her next mission at this feast, not for any particular reason, but just because she liked holding feasts and parties. She liked to eat a lot, drink a lot, and basically enjoy the trappings of royalty she had earned.

Not inherited, but actually earned.

Despite being the youngest of her father and mother's eleven children, she had amassed a great deal of wealth, power and influence by serving in the Bronze Dragon army, rising to the rank of legion commander before she finally retired. She was a renowned warrior, and a brilliant tactician. She had also served as Auroch of Ages, the leader of the entire Bronze Dragonflight, for several centuries upon her election by the High Council. Now, she focused on the passions she had discovered in her third millennium of life: tending the expansive orchards which grew the best apples in the universe (because after learning how to manipulate genetics, she could grow fruit to taste exactly how she wanted it) which made the best wine in the universe (because despite normal apples not being able to turn into wine, her genetically modified apples could), and being a mother. She had literally lost count of the number of Drakonid she had birthed, but she loved her half-human/half-dragon children just as much as her full-blood dragon offspring. Perhaps it was because they never spent much time with her; she sent them off to the human world to learn its ways, usually when they were about five or six years old. It was too easy to find a sibling twenty-five or so years older living in the human world to be a 'parent.' She also typically had a hundred or so working as servants in the castle (eighty-nine at the moment, to be precise).

As much as she loved all of her children, however, her dragons just stood out head and shoulders (literally and figuratively) above the rest. She had married a fourth heir of another Bronze clan, and they had four children together. He had also had two children with Genjuko once they were married, and he had two Drakonid that Arceus knew about. Genjuko did not have any other children, but she loved her husband's six and Arceus' hundreds as if they were all her own (and Arceus naturally did likewise).

It was the six dragon children who sat around Arceus at the head table at this particular feast, eating and drinking while she laid their mission out to them. They were all being enrolled at a school in the human world posing as transfer students. They had assumed local-sounding names to try to blend into the local population as best they could, although their skin color – a light copper tone even in human form – wouldn't help matters much. Once they were successfully embedded in the school, they wouldn't have long to accomplish their objective before arousing suspicion. Arceus looked at Genjuko's daughter. "I trust you can take care of that?"

The girl said nothing, simply nodding deeply as she took another drink. "You wouldn't have given me this task if you didn't trust I could handle it," chirped a mechanical dragon perched on the girl's shoulder.

"Of course, you're absolutely right. Target one should be easy enough. Target two, on the other hand..."

Arceus' third-born daughter spoke up. "Target two will be a little more difficult, as he tends to avoid crowds. Or being alone without at least one other member of their peerage around. If I could get close enough to him to snag him..."

"Bring him to me and I'll extract him," clicked the mechanical dragon, presumably broadcasting the thoughts of the girl who made up his perch.

Arceus tapped her chin. "It's a good plan, but my concern is someone picking up on your power signature before you can complete both extractions."

The girl let out a barely audible scoff, while the dragonling piped up, "That's why I'm doing the extractions in the first place: I don't leave a power signature, unlike the rest of you."

"Fair enough." Genjuko's daughter had abilities unique only to herself, which made her one of the team's most valuable assets... but also extremely aloof and arrogant. She never spoke either, for reasons known only to herself, but she had built a companion using a hybrid of science and magic, and "trained" it to speak for her.

The eldest – and biggest – child spoke up. "Once we have the two in our custody, then what?"

"Then the hardest part of this entire enterprise will be done and over with," Arceus exhaled. "Genjuko and I will be waiting at the designated location, along with the three leaders. They'll explain the whole plan, let them know they're not in any danger."

"And then we just wait for the rest of them to show up, right?" Genjuko's son asked.

"Exactly. It's not like they won't know how to find us..."

"I just had an idea," spoke Arceus' middle daughter. Everyone around the table nodded in assent as she spoke, since the abilities of the two girls in charge of the abductions would hopefully make it much easier than their original plan. "When do we make our move?" asked the eldest.

"Tomorrow, during the girl's PE class. The locker room is small enough to pull this plan off without anyone around becoming suspicious. I'd say try to remain inconspicuous, but..."

"'Inconspicuous?' Us? In modern-day Japan? We're gonna be the biggest, darkest kids on campus."

"I can at least cast an invisibility spell on you two girls," Genjuko contributed. "Just be aware it will break the second you use any of your magic."

"That's not really a concern," said Arceus' eldest daughter. "Once we set the plan in motion, appearances won't even matter."

"Well, I think that about covers everything," Arceus said with a deep sigh. She tried to hide the concern in her voice because she trusted her children to carry out the mission without fail, but she knew just how disastrous things could get if anything went wrong. A dragon versus devil battle royale breaking out in a human school of all places would have her in extremely hot water with the Conclave (and they were already against the undertaking to begin with), not to mention the lives that could be lost in the destruction. She shook her doubts away; her daughters would not fail her. After all, they never had.

**===== Kuoh Academy, the following day =====**

The second-years finished up their PE class, which happened to be the last period of the school day. The Occult Research Club was holding their meeting after school, so the students hurried off to their respective locker rooms to change. Asia in particular was exhausted; basketball had never really been her forte. She, Xenovia and Irina were chatting away as they entered the locker room, when Xenovia suddenly hushed them. She stared across the locker room, but at what nobody else could tell. Although to be fair, neither could she. She couldn't see what was causing it, but _something_ was in that locker room with them. _Something_ was making the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. "Xenov-"

"Shh!" Irina's concerns were silenced before she could even voice them. _Something_ had evil intentions, and the best and only sensible course of action was to get away from it as quickly as possible. "Get your clothes and get out of here," Xenovia whispered. Now panicking, the other two girls moved to their lockers to gather their things and get the hell out of there, before whatever they couldn't see that Xenovia seemingly could decided to attack them. Suddenly, the lights went out! The girls tried frantically calling out to each other, but they got no response... because they weren't actually screaming. At least, no sound was coming out of their mouths, no matter how loud they tried to shout.

Just as soon as they had been extinguished, the lights came back. "Asia! Irina! Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Xenovia," the blond angel replied as loud as she could, perhaps thinking that saying it louder would make it true. "Asia, are you okay?"

"I'm okay," the saint-turned-devil whimpered.

"Good, then let's head to the club room. We can shower and change there." Xenovia covered Asia and Irina's retreat, but stopped at the door. Looking back to where she had been fixated before, whatever it was she sensed... she sensed no longer.

**===== Occult Research Club room, a few minutes later =====**

"The locker room lights went out?" asked a somewhat skeptical yet thoroughly concerned Rossweisse.

"Not only that, we couldn't hear anything either. Not even our own voices," replied Irina, her voice trembling with nervousness.

"There was something in there, I'm sure of it," said Xenovia, trying her best to put on a brave front. "I couldn't see it, but I felt it."

"Do you think whatever it was is still in there?" asked Kiba.

"Hard to say," Xenovia frowned. "It felt like it was gone once the lights came back."

"I don't know... I wish Azazel were here. I'd like his input on the situation," Rias contemplated. "For now, I'm just glad you're all okay."

"Yeah, me too... hey, Asia, you all right? Earth to Asia...?" Issei was trying his best to pull Asia's gaze from the window, until he saw what she was looking at. "Hey, Rias? Come take a look at this."

"Hmm?" Rias moved over to the window, and she saw it as well. A flagpole towering over the forest behind the club room, flying a strange black flag she had never seen before.

_It's time..._

Asia slowly backed away, moving towards the couch Koneko and Gasper were sitting on. As she passed in front of Koneko, the nekomata looked up with a puzzled expression on her face. Like her friend wasn't... quite... herself...

Asia must have reached the same conclusion Koneko did, deftly dodging her pounce. Koneko rebounded off a nearby wall and launched herself to shield Gasper, but it was too late. He was gone, vanished along with Asia into thin air. In his place sat a black card with a cryptic message written on it.

"Dammit! I wasn't fast enough," Koneko fumed. "I couldn't tell until she walked right in front of me, but I'm sure that's not the real Asia."

The shock of watching her two bishops disappear still had Rias in its grip, but Issei was enraged. "Well, whoever or whatever it was, it's got Gasper. And I'd bet it's got the real Asia, too!"

"But how are we going to find them?" Kiba fretted.

"I see where they are." Akeno approached the window and held the black card against the glass. She waved her hand, and a cross wind picked up outside, blowing the flag straight out. Everyone in the club room gasped. The card was a miniature version of the flag in the forest. The color was the same. The sigil was the same. The only difference were the three words written on the bottom of the card.

_"Ace captures Bishops."_

**===== ? =====**

Asia and Gasper appeared out of thin air past the forest near Kuoh Academy. "Come with me, now!" Asia commanded Gasper.

"I'm not goin-" Asia didn't have time to listen to any whining or complaining. There were seven wicked strong and pissed-off devils hunting the two of them down, and they needed to get to their destination as soon as possible. So she did the only thing she could: hoist Gasper onto her back and run like hell. Fortunately, she had teleported them within a hundred meters of the rendezvous point, so she didn't have to run far – just fast. She reached a small wooden shack and flung the two of them inside, collapsing on the ground as she shut the door behind them. "Sorry for all this," she said in a voice not entirely like Asia's, "but you'll find out what's going on soon enough."

"Are- are you gonna- gonna hurt me?" Gasper stammered.

Asia looked at Gasper in disbelief. "I could have killed you and everyone else in that club room before any of you could even blink. Trust me, nobody's going to hurt you."

"Then why did you kidnap me?"

Asia pointed at a door on the far side of the room, gesturing for Gasper to go through it. Not seeing any other choice – Asia was leaning against the only other door – he nervously crept towards it.

And opened it...

"GASPER!"

Asia came flying through the door, literally tackling Gasper to the ground. "I'm so glad you're here, and you're safe!"

Gasper was dumbfounded. "What do you mean, safe? One second I'm in the ORC room, the next-"

"I know, it's okay. Just come with me!" Without waiting for an answer, she pulled Gasper to his feet and into the next room, where four very familiar faces sat around a floor table with two very strange faces, while five other strange faces sat at another table nearby. Gasper looked around the near table. "Azazel? Sir Zechs? Lord Michael? What are you all doing here?"

"Well, we were waiting for you," quipped Azazel, "and now that you're here, our host will explain to you exactly what is going on."

Arceus stood up and bowed to the two youths. "My name is Arceus, and I want you to know how happy I am that you two are here. Please, have a seat." Asia sat between Sir Zechs and his wife Grayfia, while Gasper sat between Michael and Azazel. Arceus took her seat and began speaking. "I can imagine today has been quite a shock. First and foremost, I want you both to know you are completely safe here. Your three leaders are here to ensure that. I've arranged a little... demonstration for them. See, we need each other's help to prevent the end of the world, but they want to see what my contingent brings to the table first. And what better way to do that than a good-ol'-fashioned fight?"

Gasper looked to the other table. "So Rias and the others are going to fight... _them_?!" The unknown people sitting around the other table were clearly trying not to _look_ particularly menacing, especially wearing Kuoh Academy uniforms, but they were just so... big!

"Yes, Gasper, that is the plan," Michael assured him. "The house of Gremory will fight against the Black Rose Clan."

"But, why are Gasper and I here instead of fighting alongside our friends?" the real Asia asked.

"Two reasons," Sir Zechs responded. "One, getting the two of you back safely is Rias' primary motivation right now. That will bring out the absolute best in her and her team. The second reason..." Zechs hesitated, so Arceus picked up for him. "The second reason is that the two of you are the least combat ineffective players on the team."

"So, the six of us will watch from back here while the others duke it out," Azazel continued. "Then, once everything's over, we're all going to feast together at Arceus' castle."

"Oh... okay." Gasper was still terrified, but felt ever so slightly more at ease with Azazel, Michael and Zechs in the room. If they had agreed to this plan, that meant that they trusted the woman who had put it together, and he trusted them.

"Well, now that introductions are out of the way," Arceus said as she stood up, "we really should get this show on the road. Our guests should be here any minute. Genjuko, did you deploy the proximity sensors?"

"Of course, my lady."

"Excellent." Suddenly the lights in the room turned from white to green.

"That's the 200 meter sensor," Genjuko explained.

"Right! Well, are we all ready?" Arceus asked her six children, receiving various assents in reply as they all stood up from the table. She walked over to them, and the entire group jumped through one magic circle. Shortly after the group disappeared, the lights turned yellow, then red. "They must have reached the door by now," Genjuko surmised.

"The same door Gasper and I were brought through?" Asia asked. "If so, wouldn't they just end up in this room with all of us?"

"Of course not," said Arceus, causing Asia and Gasper to nearly jump out of their skin. "Doors are a fairly trivial concept for one with my powers. They'll end up exactly where they are meant to end up."

"Wha- but how- I saw you-" Gasper stammered.

"Confused about how I can be in two places at once?" Arceus said with a slight smirk. "It's a bit of applied science that I'll explain once this is all over, but in the meantime..." She waved her hand around, and the wall in front of them became a giant viewing screen on which they saw a large room. There were six statues on raised pedestals at the far end of the room, and a seventh on a massive throne. The statues looked to be carved out of something shiny and jet-black... obsidian, perhaps? Whatever it was, it reflected the light all around the room. Suddenly the House of Gremory burst into view, seemingly from behind the screen.

Arceus grinned. "It's showtime."

* * *

**_A/N: TwistedViper20XX here. So this chapter is supposed to set up the initial encounter between the Devils of Gremory and the Black Rose Dragons. There was some minor dialogue from the Black Rose children, but nothing too major or revelatory. Just a "hey, here we are" because intros will be in full force over the next several chapters._**

**_***Special thanks to OnetimeMuffin, antonio23, and hash16 for following this story!_**


	3. Devils Vs Dragons!

**_A/N:_**

_Thoughts_

**_{{Draconic}}_**

**[[Ddraig]]**

* * *

_Chapter 3_

**===== Occult Research Club room =====**

Rias was still in shock, trying to process the sight of both of her bishops vanishing into thin air.

_I must be strong..._

The other devils would surely be looking to her for leadership and guidance...

_I MUST BE STRONG..._

Getting Asia and Gasper back safely was most important thing right now...

_I! MUST! BE! STRONG!_

She knew she had to do something, but what?

_I mUsT bE sTrOnG..._

Her head was pounding and her heart threatened to beat its way through her chest...

_I must... I must... I... Iiiiiiiiiiii..._

Her strength left her and she collapsed to the floor.

Rias awoke some time later, with her peerage surrounding her and the household of Sona Sitri, her close friend and the student council president, nearby. "Ugh..." she groaned as she tried to pull herself to a sitting position. "How long have I been out?"

"Easy, President," Issei said as he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't exert yourself. You hit your head against your desk as you fell. You've been out for a good hour or so."

Suddenly the cold of an ice pack pressed against her temple registered in Rias' mind... as did the last thing that happened before she lost consciousness. "Gasper... Asia... where are they?" She kept trying to force herself up – _I must be strong – _but Issei kept trying to hold her down, and try as she might she was in no condition to resist.

"I sensed a strange power spike coming from your club room," Sona offered. "By the time I got here, you were on the ground and your bishops were gone. I sent word to my sister to try and find Sir Zechs, but nobody seems to have seen your brother in quite some time."

"My brother is gone from the Underworld?"

"As is your sister-in-law Grayfia."

"Akeno and Irina have reached out to find Azazel and Michael," Rossweisse said, "but there's no trace of them, either."

The three faction leaders vanished, and her bishops having been abducted... Rias was filled with an overwhelming sense of dread. Nothing about this could possibly be coincidence. There was only one logical conclusion: someone, somewhere was trying to lure the Princess of Ruin and her peerage into a trap. But who, and why... she tried to run through a list of rivals they had recently battled against. Or was this altogether a new threat? It was all too much to process at once, and Rias lapsed into unconsciousness once again.

By the time Rias woke up, it was nighttime. Her devils had fallen at random around the room, except of course for her devoted pawn Issei, who lay on the floor beneath the couch she was on. He had been holding her hand the entire time. Of course he had. Though neither of them had summoned the courage to admit it yet, she loved him and he loved her. No matter to whom Issei's... attention might wander, there was no denying it. Maybe, once Asia and Gasper were back safely, and she had thoroughly vented her rage against whoever it was that took them... but they weren't safe, and she had no idea where they were. That was all she could think of at the moment: how not only had the two weakest members of her peerage been kidnapped _right under her nose_, she had been completely oblivious as well as utterly powerless to do anything about it.

Rias stood up in the darkness, kicking off her shoes so as to try to move as quietly as possible, and made her way over to the window. There was no wind outside, yet that black flag with the same markings as the calling card the kidnappers had left was flying straight out, barely even fluttering.

Magic.

Of course.

There was no other explanation.

Whoever it was might as well have posted a sign saying "we have your bishops, come and get them" with a giant arrow pointing right at their location. Someone was trying to goad Rias and her peerage into a fight, that much was certain. But who, and why, were questions she couldn't answer, try as she might.

Rias was suddenly startled by a hand on her shoulder. In her absentminded drifting, she hadn't notice Issei creeping up behind her. "You all right, Rias?"

Rias tried to force a smile. She could not allow herself to break; remaining strong for the rest of her peerage and putting forth the face of a brave leader was of the utmost importance. "I'm fine. Just..."

"You're worried about Gasper and Asia, right?"

Rias nodded silently, and Issei's hands tensed up into fists. "I'm sick of this. When I first met Asia, I swore that I would do everything in my power to keep her safe. But this is the fourth time something like this has happened to her."

Rias shuddered. First there was Raynare, the fallen angel who removed Asia's Sacred Gear for her own selfish uses, killing her in the process. It was that event that was the catalyst for Rias reincarnating Asia as one of her devil servants in the first place. Then there was Diodora Astaroth, the devil aristocrat who had lusted after Asia since the days of her sainthood, who kidnapped her during a Rating Game gone wrong. No sooner was she free from _his_ clutches than the rebel Devil King Shalba Beelzebub banished her to the Dimensional Gap, which would have certainly killed her had it not been for the interference of Vali and his team of miscreants. It was during that episode that Issei had become the pure incarnation of wrath known as Juggernaut Drive, a technique he hadn't even known the existence of until that very moment.

And here he found himself, a couple months later, with Asia being abducted _yet again_, and _yet again_ he had been powerless to stop it. Not only that, but Gasper had been snatched as well. None of this made any sense whatsoever, and the more Issei thought about it, the angrier he got. Someone, somewhere was screwing with his friends, and it was driving him into a blind rage.

Until Rias hugged him and buried his face in her ample chest. "Issei, first thing in the morning we're going to find them - Asia, Gasper, and whoever's holding them hostage. And then... we'll show them exactly what happens to people who mess with the House of Gremory." She kissed him and bade him go to sleep, which he did, snuggled as comfortably as he could with her on the couch.

The next morning, the devils of both Houses Gremory and Sitri - along with Irina, who had returned from trying to locate Lord Michael - moved through the woods behind Kuoh Academy, towards the giant flag. The group tried moving as stealthily as they could through the trees, when Issei felt a sharp twitch in his left hand. "Ddraig, did you feel that?"

Ddraig groaned. **[[I felt that, all right. A strange magical energy... yet somehow it feels familiar. In any event, stay sharp. That might have been sentry magic, which means whoever we're looking for probably knows we're here.]]**

"Right... in that case, no sense tiptoeing through the trees anymore." Issei started hauling ass through the woods, while the rest of the group tried to catch up. Eventually they came upon a small clearing, just big enough for what looked to be a single-room shack with the flag they were searching for flying from the top of it.

_Hold on Asia, I'm coming..._

Issei steeled himself and flung the door open. It opened into a room somehow much more vast that it looked on the outside. Perhaps the sheer size of the room also made it look darker than it really was. Not even the sunlight from outside seemed to be having much effect on the ambiance, or was that just Issei's devil sight at work?

The rest of the Gremory household filed in behind him, splitting off to the sides as they entered the room. "Sona, reach out to your sister," Rias said. "See if she's heard from my brother recently."

Silence...

"Sona?"

She turned back towards the entrance, and was shocked at what she saw. There was no doorway; only a solid stone wall. She was expecting to some up against some pretty high-level sorcery, but this was just unbelievable. "Well, I guess we're not going back the way we came," Kiba frowned, taking a couple slashes at the wall for good measure.

Their way back blocked, the team pushed forward.

"Wow... other than its size and the fact that it's completely empty, there's nothing really remarkable about the room..." Akeno thought out loud. As if in response to some unmade wish, she could now hear a small hiss behind her and the group. She froze in terror as the hiss got louder... or was it _hisses_? By now, everyone had also heard the noise and turned to confront the source.

A few feet behind them, metal was weaving its way up from the floor... and from the walls... until there was now a chain-link fence between them and the wall they had started at. A ring of torches burst into flame several feet above their heads, lighting the room from the near end to the far, where they now saw several black stone statues posed close to the wall. One was sitting on an ornate throne, with three to each side for a total of seven. Issei cautiously approached the statue seated on the throne, and noticed it was of a woman... a _naked_ woman at that. Of course, Issei being Issei, his inner pervert just couldn't resist coming out.

"Issei, what the hell do you think you're doing?! Rias yelled as she noticed Issei leering over the statue's breasts.

He looked over his shoulder to answer her. "Oh, come on, it's just a statue!" He looked back and...

_Wait a sec... this thing's eyes weren't red before..._

Suddenly the haunting strain of violins filled the air as the "statue" stood up. Issei almost jumped out of his skin as he watched stone twist into flesh, cloth and leather, leaving before him a giant woman with skin the color of caramel, eyes as red as Rias' hair, jet-black hair that fell in a braid over her left shoulder, and a devilish grin that boded nothing but ill for her "visitors." The rest of her body was covered in a cape the color of bronze, with the sigil they had spotted on the card and flag. "That sigil... you..."

"I am the Ace of Blades, and it is my honor to receive you," Arceus spoke in an even, cool voice.

"What have you done with my servants?" Rias demanded.

"Eager to get down to business, are we? Very well," Arceus responded with a smirk. "We're going to play a little game, in the form of one-on-one combat. Only one fighter per side may be inside the caged area at any one time. Any support may be given to a fighter before the match starts, but once it starts no physical or magical assistance is allowed. The fights will be to the finish; the fighter who is unable or unwilling to fight any longer loses. The team to win four combats first is the winner. Do we have an accord?"

Rias stared at the giant woman hard. She had been right all along; someone had been trying to lure her into a fight. But... why? "Why are you doing this?"

Arceus simply waved her off. "We can talk each other's heads off later on if you want to, but only _after_ you prove your worth in battle." She waved her hand and another chain-link fence appeared between her and the House of Gremory. Another wave, and a door appeared in the middle of both fences. "Choose your first combatant," she commanded, sitting back on her throne.

Rias fumed, but realized to her dismay she had to play this game in order to get Gasper and Asia back. "Very well, we'll play your little game. But afterwards, if you don't return my servants to me, there won't be a safe place for you to hide." She led her team to the other side of the fence.

Arceus smirked watching Rias retreat. _Good thing I don't need to hide, from you or anyone else_.

Rias huddled her team up. "All right, since magical enhancements are allowed, Issei will fight last."

"What? What do you mean, fight last? I want to get in there and kick the crap out of someone!"

"If you do that, you won't be able to focus on using your Boosted Gear to power the rest of us up."

"That is a good point," Xenovia admitted. "Even if you can only power us up before the battle starts, it should still be enough to give us an advantage."

"All right, fine," Issei grumbled. "So who's going in first, then?"

"I'll go first," volunteered Koneko.

"Are you sure?" Rias asked. Despite being the physically strongest devil on her team, Koneko had the disadvantage of being the smallest as well.

"I'm sure."

"All right, then... Boosted Gear, go!"

**[[BOOST!]]**

Issei powered up his Boosted Gear until he heard the **[[Explosion!]]** callout. "Here goes: Boosted Gear, Gift!"

**[[Transfer!]]**

Koneko's body was overwhelmed by the inundation of power she was experiencing; most likely this was just due to her small stature, so she took a moment and shook it off before entering the cage. "I see you have selected your first fighter, Lady Gremory. Allow me to choose mine... Zephyr!"

One of the "statues" on Arceus' right flank began walking towards the cage. The black stone covering his skin scaled back, leaving tattoo-like patterns covering his arms, back and chest. His lower half was covered in knee-length shorts, like a martial artist might wear, black with a golden fist grasping a lightning bolt on the left side. His blond hair was in braids down to his jawline, with a simple blue band around his head to match his blue eyes. On his hands and shins appeared a set of martial arts pads with various runes inscribed on them. He entered the cage and the door shut behind him; similarly, the door on Koneko's side shut behind her. Zephyr's eyes darted from left to right, and he scoffed. _**{{Figures you'd put me up against the smallest one.}}**_

_**{{I have my reasons for that,}}**_ Arceus responded. "Are you ready?"

Koneko nodded as she shifted to a fighting stance. Zephyr did the same. "My name is Zephyr of the Golden Fist," he shouted across the room to his opponent. "I've been looking forward to a good fight... don't disappoint me!"

Koneko scowled. "Suck it," was her only response.

Arceus' voice echoed throughout the room. **"ROUND 1 - FIGHT!"**

The two fighters wasted no time charging at each other. They each attempted to throw a punch, but their two fists collided in midair, causing them to jump back.

_So, he's right-handed. __**{{So, she's a lefty.}}**_

_Plus, he's a lot bigger than me.__** {{She's also a lot smaller than me.}}**_

_He's also crazy strong. __**{{How can someone so small be so strong?}}**_

_If I could get inside his reach, I could take him down. __**{{If I can use my reach to take her down, I don't have to worry about her getting inside me.}}**_

_He could still knock me silly before I have a chance to do that, so I gotta avoid getting hit. __**{{Maybe I can swat her around a bit, at least keep her off balance.}}**_

Zephyr rocked back on the heels of his feet ever so slightly, yet not so slightly that Koneko didn't catch it. She took that as a sign he was about to attack, and decided to beat him to the punch. She charged in with a kick aimed at his ribs, which he blocked expertly and countered with a left hook, which was also blocked. Move and countermove, combo and dodge; the two fighters went blow-for-blow while the devils of House Gremory cheered Koneko on. Suddenly Ddraig spoke up. **[[Rias?]]**

"What is it, Ddraig?"

**[[Something feels strange about all this. We're definitely punching above our weight here.]]**

"What do you mean?"

**[[It means that none of us are going to be able to win with raw power alone. It's going to take finding a weakness and exploiting it.]]**

"Find a weakness and exploit it..." Rias thought for a moment. "Koneko, get away from him!"

Koneko heard her master's instructions and focused on breaking Zephyr's rush so that she could disengage. She parried an attack and for a moment she thought she might have found the break she needed. Unfortunately, her defensive move left her chest wide open _for literally a split second, _but that was all the time it took for him to drive his fist right into her sternum, sending her flying straight back into the fence and collapsing her into a heap. "Koneko! Are you all right?" Issei shouted.

"Yeah, I'm okay... bastard just caught me off guard is all," Koneko choked out. That was the only clean shot he'd connected with, and she was having a hard time catching her breath as a result. She realized she stood no chance going toe-to-toe with him; although they were about equal in strength, the size difference between the two put Koneko at an overwhelming disadvantage. "Koneko, listen to me," she heard Rias whisper in her ear. "Use your nekomata powers and keep a moderate distance between you and him. It might be your only hope." Koneko nodded, then sprouted two white ears and a long white tail.

Zephyr seemed underwhelmed, for his part. "I hope you're not thinking of quitting now, because if that's all the fight you have in you..."

He charged Koneko with an overhand right punch.

"...I'm going to be very disappointed!"

Koneko leapt over the punch at the very last second and Zephyr hit nothing but chain-link fence. His hand was protected by the gauntlet he wore, but he wore nothing on his back - a back which was immediately peppered with fireballs. He cringed in pain, but eventually shook it off. "Well, well..." he growled menacingly, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"It appears Little Miss Kitty had a few other tricks up her sleeve."

Sparks began to jump from his gauntlets and shin pads.

"Of course, you're not the only one. It's time I showed you why I'm called..."

Zephyr rose a fist into the air and a bolt of lightning struck it.

_"STORMSTRIKE!"_

* * *

_**A/N: TwistedViper20XX here!**_

**_First off, thanks to avale2 for favoriting and following this story! I hope all of my followers continue to enjoy this story._**

**_Second, I finally managed to put together a decent cover image. It's Arceus' personal sigil, the one that appears on the flag flying in the forest. _**


	4. Cat Devil vs Storm Dragon!

**_A/N:_**

_Thoughts_

**_{{Draconic}}_**

**[[Ddraig]]**

* * *

_Chapter 4_

**_===== Flashback to Dragon Queen Alexstrasza's Castle, several hundred years earlier =====_**

_"Zephyr, are you sure you want to do this?" Genjuko had just found out her son planned on entering the Queen's Melee, a free-for-all fighting tournament. He would be the youngest, least experienced, and quite possibly weakest fighter in the tournament, yet for some reason he insisted on competing._

_"I'm sure, Mother. I have to do this. I have to stop them." Zephyr's voice showed conviction, even if his face wavered._

_"But why? What do you think you can accomplish? Arceus... Alexander... say something!" She pleaded with her husband and her wife to intervene, but for the moment they remained silent._

_"You know why. You hear them talking about our family, just like I do. How our parents are nobodies, a servant's bastard and a fourth son. How my sister and I are the children of nobodies. Meanwhile, they can't lick the others' boots fast enough."_

_"Ah, there it is..." Alexander had a somber expression on his face. "You're jealous because people hold your brother and sisters in higher esteem than you and your sister." While he had enough station of his own, it paled in comparison to that of Arceus. Not that either of them had any issue with it, but to hear it affecting his children so pained his heart._

_"Call it jealousy if you want. We're all the same family, right? Then why do they treat us so... different?"_

_"Of course we are," Genjuko said, trying her best to hold back her own tears. "It's just... we can't do anything about how others act."_

_Zephyr's fists tensed up. "Maybe, maybe not... but I'm sure as hell going to try. I'm going to beat some respect into them."_

_Arceus sighed. "Zephyr, come here." Zephyr did as he was bid and stood before his mother. "I am my parent's eleventh and last child. I was expected to be married off to some noble in another clan as part of a political alliance. I was less than three hundred years old, if I remember correctly. When I met the man I was to marry, I refused. I snatched a sword from one of my father's vanguard and said 'I will never marry that man, and I'll kill anyone who tries to make me.' Of course, his family's guards drew their weapons, and the rest of my family's drew theirs. We stood there for what felt like forever. Out of nowhere, my father comes up from behind me, takes the sword away from me and hands it back to his guard, and says 'I guess the marriage is off.' Then he looked down and me and said 'If you're going to swing a sword, you'd better learn how to use it.' The point is, I made my own path in life because of the choices I made, but I also dealt with the consequences of those choices."_

_She gave Zephyr a reassuring hug, then stepped back and looked him in the eyes. "If you insist on entering the tournament, then we won't stop you."_

_"Arceus?!"_

_"But-" Arceus shot a silencing glare at her best friend/sister/wife. "But make sure you understand what you're getting yourself into. This is your first fight of any kind, and all of the others have won at least one tournament somewhere along the way. You could be injured, or even killed. And I speak from firsthand experience when I say: death isn't a pleasant experience, even if it's only temporary."_

_"I know, and I understand." Zephyr placed his hands on top of Arceus'. "But if they won't respect us, I have to make them respect us."_

_Arceus sighed... then kissed Zephyr on the forehead and hugged him tightly. "Then make your own decision, and do what you must."_

_Zephyr looked back at Genjuko, who had finally allowed herself to cry a little bit. "Just don't go getting yourself killed, all right? Your sister is gone and may never come back, and..."_

_"Stop it, Mother," Zephyr said with a smile. "Lysandra will be back when she's ready, and when she comes back we can tell her about how I won the Queen's Melee."_

**_===== Three Days Later =====_**

_The air was thick with the sound of trumpets and jubilation, but Zephyr couldn't hear anything over the sound of his own heart thundering inside his chest, and the gagging of his final challenger. He held himself up on one knee beside his foe, too weary to stand but too proud to fall to the ground._

_He was battered._

_He was bloody._

_He was broken._

_He was breathless._

_But most importantly, he was victorious..._

_"I won... I beat them all... now they'll have no choice but to respect us..."_

* * *

Fists and feet, flames and sparks were now flying with reckless abandon. Koneko was trying to keep her larger adversary off-balance by hitting quick combos before retreating out of his range, while Zephyr was clearly looking to grapple and overpower the smaller girl. All he had to do was grab hold of _something_; an arm, a leg, even a tail, and this fight would be as good as over. She couldn't have been any more than a hundred pounds, which he could ragdoll easily if he managed to get her in his grasp. Of course, their size disparity was both an advantage and disadvantage; she was _so_ small, fast and agile that grabbing her seemed to be an exercise in futility. To his frustration, Zephyr's goal seemed to be telepathically clear, because Rias and Issei kept coaching her to stay away from him.

Koneko kept her profile small, working over Zephyr's midsection and legs whenever the openings presented themselves. When she jumped back from her last strike, Zephyr lunged at her with an overhand right that would have probably cleaned Koneko's clock for good... had she not seen it coming in plenty of time to dodge and pepper his now-exposed ribcage with a series of blistering punches and kicks that sent him skidding to the fence.

_**{{You always underestimate smaller opponents at your own peril,}}**_ Arceus said, with a smirk that Zephyr literally heard rather than saw.

_**{{Shut up!}}**_ Zephyr gritted through the pain now shooting through his ribs. _**{{I'm not underestimating her; it's just that she's so small and quick it's damn near impossible to grab hold of her. She's doing well to stay out of my reach, I have to give her credit.}}**_

_**{{Then maybe you should try doing something a little different.}}**_

"Well, little one, I must admit I'm impressed," he choked out, trying not to betray how badly hurt he really was. "You've managed to hang with me for a decent amount of time, which is an achievement in itself for someone so small."

"Suck it," was Koneko's classic retort; she refused to let herself be thrown off her game and forced into making a mistake. She was bound and determined to beat this guy up for everything and everyone that meant a damn thing to her. For Asia and Gasper, who had been snatched off the face of the earth and this prick had something to do with it; for Rias, who was both suffering mental anguish from their servant and peer being kidnapped; for Rossweisse, Kiba and Xenovia, who would be looking to her to set the tone for their own fights; but most importantly for Issei, the lecherous little pervert who she had somehow fallen in love with (along with every other girl in the Gremory household). Even if he didn't show it, he had to be the one most torn about Asia's disappearance, as it was he who had brought her into the devil underworld in the first place. But mostly, she was going to do it for herself. This asshole was taking his slight size advantage for granted (he was _maybe_ a foot taller than her and weighed around 180 pounds, which begged the question of how he was as strong as he was to begin with) and mocking her the entire time.

Zephyr, for his part, laughed off her snide remark. "Maybe I'll take you up on that offer, after our fight is over. And trust me when I say..." He paused mid-sentence to charge at her. "...this fight is over!" He swung an overhand left, which Koneko ducked easily...

...so easily, in fact, she was caught flush on the chin unawares by his rising knee.

The sheer force of the strike sent Koneko flying into the opposite fence, coughing up blood as she collided with the metal. Zephyr followed her in and unleashed a sinister string of kicks to Koneko's head and midsection, always aiming at the spot she wasn't defending. Eventually she couldn't take any more and her hands fell to her sides, which Zephyr took as his cue to unleash one final, devastating kick to her chest that sent her flying away from the fence, sprawled out motionless in the middle of the arena floor.

"KONEKO!" Rias screamed, the pain of watching her Rook being pummeled clearly evident in her voice.

"Get up, Koneko! This fight's not over yet!" Xenovia tried her best to rally her friend. The rest of the team lent their voices as well, but it was seemingly no use; Koneko was unconscious.

Zephyr, meanwhile, slumped against the cage still clutching his ribs. Some of them were definitely broken, no doubt about it. Still, a small price to pay for victory... until he saw Koneko's hand twitch.

_How... is she... not dead yet?_

Slowly, painfully, Koneko tried to lift herself up, which seemed to only infuriate Zephyr. "Stay down," he growled in warning. "You're already defeated; don't make me kill you."

She was now coughing up blood, but she was fighting to get back to her feet. "If you're not going to kill me, then shut up and fight."

No sooner was Koneko on her feet then Zephyr almost cut her clean in half with a spear tackle to the ribs, leaving her writhing in pain on the ground.

"You're gutsy, I'll give you that." Zephyr's own ribs were killing him as well, to the point where he could no longer stand but rather had to drop to one knee. "But a small piece of advice: learn to admit when you're beaten. Otherwise, the pain and suffering won't stop."

Koneko was getting angry now; she forced herself back to her feet through sheer power of will. "Are you gonna talk, or fight?"

That question was answered with a vicious climbing roundhouse kick to the side of the head. "Now you're just doing this to spite me," Zephyr hissed.

Still, Koneko refused to stay down, struggling with every fiber in her being to get back to her feet. But her body was reaching its limits; she could only stay up on all fours.

"Fine... if that's the way you want it, I'll put an end to this." Zephyr locked his eyes on Koneko's vulnerable head with evil intentions. "But before I do, tell me this: how does it feel knowing you're about to die ten feet in front of your precious master-"

_My master... Rias..._

"-knowing she can't do a thing to save you?"

Suddenly Koneko's mind was flooded with memories of when she first met Rias; how after the nightmare of her childhood with her sister Kuroka, the devil hierarchy wanted her executed, but Sir Zechs had intervened and placed her under the care of his younger sister.

_"From now on, you will live your life for my sake,"_ Rias had commanded her.

"This ends now!" Zephyr sprinted towards Koneko. **"FINISHING MOVE: DRAGON STOMP!"** He planted his foot against the back of her skull, and attempted to drive her head through the concrete.

Key word: attempted.

Koneko had planted her fists in the ground, her arms fully extended. She reached up and grabbed Zephyr by the ankle, which caught him completely off guard. "So, are you really that afraid to die?"

"I'm not afraid to die at all," Koneko seethed, getting both feet underneath her and punching Zephyr dead center in the knee, causing him to scream in pain as his bones shattered. "But my master..."

She grabbed Zephyr's now broken lower leg and swung him around by it.

"...hasn't given me permission yet!" She let go and flung Zephyr into the farthest wall, cracking the stone. Her body became engulfed in white flames, and all of her injuries instantly healed themselves. She waited for Zephyr to pull himself to his feet, which he eventually did because he was also too stubborn to die.

"Well, well, well..." he coughed, barely audible due to his massive internal injuries. He held his right hand out and created a small golden-yellow fireball in his palm. Koneko held her position; she had plenty of range to dodge the fireball if he threw it.

Except he didn't throw it... he _ate_ it. Chewed it, swallowed it, like a piece of fruit.

A piece of fruit that was now burning him from the inside, judging by his screams-

_That's not a scream of pain... that's a roar_, Koneko said to herself, growing more confused by the second. As she watched Zephyr, her confusion gave way to terror. Not only were his injuries healing, he was bulking up and growing significantly taller, about a foot by the time he stopped. His body was now engulfed in golden flames, his hair was now black and his eyes red. He stared down Koneko with those red eyes, and let out a sinister chuckle as he squared up.

"Now things are finally getting interesting."

Technique, defense, preservation, all the disciplines fighters normally adhere to were now out the window. As the two combatants clashed in the middle of the arena, it became clear they each shared a single agenda: to knock the other out.

"So, it seems you can boost your life force through sheer force of will? I'm impressed!" Zephyr said arrogantly through a storm of punches and kicks.

"If that's what it takes to kick your ass, then that's what I'll do!" Koneko raged in response. He was still that much bigger and that much stronger than she was, but now she was driving on pure adrenaline and rage. It was her only hope of beating him.

Arceus, for her part, seemed amused at this new development. "Lifebinder's Blessing," she mused aloud, to no one in particular, but loud enough for the House of Gremory to hear her on the other side of the arena. "A magical flame that not only completely heals the user, but also renders him completely invulnerable to new injuries."

"What?" Rias gasped.

"Completely invulnerable?" Issei stormed. "Then how is this a fair fight if he can just make himself invincible?"

"Hmm... good question," Arceus smirked. "The better question is, can your friend survive until it wears off?"

"Of course she can't!" Zephyr bellowed in response, which only made Koneko even angrier.

What she neglected, and what Zephyr was counting on, is that an angry fighter is a sloppy fighter. Zephyr kept taunting Koneko, making her increasingly angry until she finally overreached herself.

That was all the window Zephyr needed. He sidestepped one of Koneko's punches and scored again with his climbing roundhouse, knocking Koneko to the ground. She was dazed from the sheer force of the blow, but not completely out. She was just addled enough that she never saw the follow-up blow coming.

**"FINISHING MOVE: THUNDER STOMP!"**

Zephyr executed his finisher again, but with two critical differences. First, he aimed for the left side of her back, right where her heart should be. Two, when the stomp connected, his boots sent a bolt of lightning straight through Koneko's chest.

That was all it took.

Sudden.

Painless.

Efficient.

Zephyr crumpled to the ground as his flames died out, leaving him gasping for air and clutching his ribs. At the same time, the pool of blood growing beneath Koneko's body bore the truth of the situation for the rest of the Gremory family to see. Her golden eyes were frozen open but completely vacant, staring into an eternal space she could not see.

All of the screaming, all of the crying, all of the cage rattling, all of the swearing, all of the threats, none of it could help.

None of it could change the fact that Koneko Toujou, nekomata and Rook of Rias Gremory, was dead.

When Arceus finally spoke, her calm and callous words felt like a thousand knives:

"Koneko is unable to compete any further. The winner is Zephyr."

* * *

_**A/N: TwistedViper20XX here!**_

_**So, we're finally introduced to our first dragon, Zephyr. A little bit of backstory on him: he is the youngest of Alexander's six children. He respects physical strength above all else and fights with a sense of honor, but expects people to know their limits and admit when they've been defeated. In his mind, there is no point in continuing to fight an opponent who has clearly demonstrated his or her superiority. This mindset, misguided as it may or may not be, is really what prompts him to try and kill Koneko rather than just defeat her (she refused to stay down, so he puts her down for good rather than continuing to expend energy beating her into submission). He also carries a chip on his shoulder, growing up in the shadow of his older and more highly-regarded siblings, which is what pushes him to become as strong as he is. In his eyes, respect is something that can be taken through strength (by force and violence if necessary) rather than earned by one's character. Ironically, or perhaps not, the person he holds in highest esteem is the one person he has never defeated, no matter how many times he's tried.**_


	5. Lightning Devil vs Archer Dragon!

A/N:

_Thoughts_

_**{{Draconic}}**_

**[[Ddraig]]**

The doors in both fences opened, and Rias and Issei sprinted to the spot where Koneko's body lay. Rias knelt down in the pool of blood that surrounded her, picked her up gingerly, and wept as she closed her eyes. As Rias sobbed, Issei's attention was drawn to where Zephyr lay a few feet away, still clutching his ribs and gasping for air. Without thinking, he took a step towards the injured fighter, only to be blown off his feet.

"Don't even think about it," their host cautioned Issei as he landed a few feet away from where he had been standing. Fortunately, nothing was injured on Issei other than his pride.

Arceus waved her hand, and a magic circle appeared on the arena floor. Upon closer inspection, it looked like a giant clock. She made a circular motion with one finger, and the hands on the clock spun counterclockwise. She waved her hand again, and beams of light shot up from the clock, surrounding both fighters in magical energy. As it faded, Zephyr sprung back to his feet, his injuries completely healed. Rias marveled at his recovery, and was about to open her mouth to say something when Koneko began to stir in her arms. "Ugggh... Ri-as...? Wha... what happened?"

"Koneko?! You're alive!"

"Did I... did I lose?"

Suddenly her adversary pulled her to her feet, and in that moment it all came back to her: the fight, her power surge, a flash of pain that was both infinitely intense while somehow being just as brief... and then, waking up in Rias' arms in a pool of blood...

"You..." Her eyes fell on Zephyr, who was wearing a half-cocked smile. "You-"

"We fought. I won. You lost." He patted her on the shoulder and tussled her hair, leaving her confused as he walked toward the fence.

_**{{Well?}}**_ Arceus asked him, materializing a bottle out of thin air and tossing it his way.

_**{{I have no complaints,}}**_ he ceded, taking a deep swig. _**{{Still, people should learn to accept defeat as it comes. Better that than the alternative.}}**_

_**{{I won't argue your philosophy, not here and now. It's enough that you won.}}**_

Arceus then turned her attention back to Rias, who along with Issei had just guided Koneko back to their side of the fence. "Well, Lady Gremory, your fighter was defeated so you have the luxury of sending your next fighter into the arena first."

Rias debated who to send in for a moment, until her Queen strode past her. "Akeno? You sure?"

Akeno nodded. "Don't worry. I'll be sure to win."

"All right, but before you go..." Issei raised his left hand. "Boosted Gear: Gift!"

**[[Transfer!]]** A burst of power flowed into the Priestess of Thunder, and she could feel her magical power becoming stronger as she stepped into the cage. Their host eyed her for a moment before speaking a single name.

"Xyleena."

The highest plinth to the host's left shot began to lower. Its occupant stepped off and toward the cage, transforming as she walked. Her black skin became brown, and long black hair twisted itself into braids and descended to the middle of her back. Her skin turned back to black, except now it looked almost like leather, and various patterns and reliefs could be seen in what could now best be described as a black leather body suit. A single black rose relief manifested itself on top of brown cleavage, and guns materialized out of thin air and attached to her ankles.

And more guns attached to her thighs...

And more guns attached to her waist, abdomen and lower back...

And more guns in chest holsters.

She was equipped with more guns than one person could possibly use, and a giant sniper rifle and a longbow slung across her back certainly didn't help. Finally, she opened a pair of eyes as blue as a noon sky before cracking a menacing smile at Akeno. "I hope you're ready for the fight of your life," she crowed before settling into a fighting stance.

_She's cocky... too cocky for my liking,_ Akeno said to herself. _I'll have to end this quickly before she really gets going._

"And I hope you like pain, because you're stepping into a great big world of it."

"Hmm... we'll see about that." Xyleena snapped her fingers and the gate behind her slammed shut.

"Are you ready?" asked Arceus.

"Ready!" Akeno shouted.

Arceus waved her hand and the gate behind Akeno slammed shut as well.

**"ROUND 2 - FIGHT!"**

Xyleena took off at a dead sprint toward one of the side walls, unleashing a spray of magical bullets that Akeno had no choice but to take flight to avoid. When she reached the wall, she continued running straight vertically up the wall, leaping off when she was high enough and drawing her bow.

_**{{NOCK!}}**_

She took ahold of the bowstring.

_**{{DRAW!}}**_

She drew the bowstring back, and a magical arrow formed on the bow.

_**{{LOOSE!}}**_

She let the arrow fly, narrowly missing Akeno and lodging it in the opposite wall. She loosed two more arrows the same way before reaching the ground.

_**{{NOCK-DRAW-LOOSE! NOCK-DRAW-LOOSE! NOCK-DRAW-LOOSE!}}**_ Xyleena kept firing arrows, and Akeno kept dodging them.

**[[It's a stalemate,]]** Ddraig observed. **[[Akeno's managing to dodge everything she's firing, but she can't stay still long enough to cast her own offensive magic.]]**

"So as long as she's at range, Akeno has no chance..." Rias said dolefully.

"Yeah, you're right..." Issei said, trying to come up with an idea. "Akeno! You're going to have to close on her! As long as she keeps you at range, she can fire those arrows off all day long!"

_Close on her? And do what? I'm not a hand-to-hand fighter... but I don't have any other choice!_

Akeno flew in as low and as fast as she could, dodging arrows the entire way. Xyleena realized what she was doing a split second too late, as Akeno buried her shoulder into her midsection and drove her into the far wall!

"Now, ring out thunder!" Akeno cast the largest, deadliest thunderbolt she could conjure, but Xyleena was able to dodge it with a split second to spare. She resumed her wall running, this time climbing one of the fences.

Akeno summoned her lightning and fallen angel powers and took aim at the fence. No way would she be able to dodge that, she thought... yet to the shock of everyone in the Gremory household Xyleena somehow continued running, completely unimpeded by the storm flowing beneath her feet!

Now thoroughly enraged, Akeno threw several more bolts of lightning, intending to thoroughly annihilate her foe. Yet Xyleena seemed intent on making a mockery out of her, jumping to the floor at the last possible moment. Akeno decided to go for another shoulder charge, her only successful offensive maneuver so far. She lined her enemy up, who was now sprinting headlong at her.

Again at the last possible second, Xyleena hit a foot-first slide.

"What the-"

Whatever the rest of Akeno's exclamation was, it was interrupted by the feeling of two round barrels pressed against her abdomen.

***BOOM!***

Akeno was propelled towards the ceiling by a vicious, point-blank shotgun blast. She coughed up blood as she hit the ceiling, and she knew every internal organ she had must've been damaged by the impact.

As it happened, that was the least of her worries.

Sensing that the time had come to end this battle, Xyleena took aim with her bow once again. Her eyes glowed purple, and she unleashed a torrent of arrows skyward. They hit Akeno's wrists and ankles, binding her to the ceiling.

Her prey secured, Xyleena sauntered to the far end of the room. "Well, I give you credit for putting up such a tough fight," she conceded while drawing a wicked-looking black arrow from a quiver on her belt. "But you've lost, and I offer you one chance. Yield, or I will kill you."

There was no hint of malice in the threat; just a very matter of fact reminder that their duel could only end when one of the two participants was either unwilling (through surrender) or unable (by death) to continue fighting.

What happened next was fueled either by extreme pride or extreme stupidity - it was impossible to discern in the moment. Akeno spat a mouthful of blood right in Xyleena's face.

"Go to hell," she whispered as she finally let the reality of defeat settle in, as evidenced by her tears.

Xyleena's expression never changed as she wiped her face off and nocked that sinister arrow. She looked over to Arceus, who offered only a slow blink in response. Her unspoken question answered, she took aim and drew her bowstring back.

"Only if you meet me at the gates."

Her eyes burned gold, and all of the arrows she had shot into the wall began to vibrate.

"Game over."

With those words, the arcane arrows flew from the walls and charged up her arrowhead.

**"FINISHING MOVE: CAPACITOR SHOT!"**

She let the arrow fly true towards Akeno's chest, causing a chaos of explosions that only barely managed to drown out the fallen angel's screams of pain.

Mercifully, Akeno was dead before she hit the ground.

Arceus snapped both gates open and revived Akeno. "Akeno is unable to continue. Xyleena is the winner."

Akeno struggled to her feet, and Xyleena reached out a hand to help her. "Try not to feel too bad," she said with a Cheshire Cat-like grin. "You were unfortunately outmatched from the start. Your lightning seems pretty devastating, but it doesn't matter if you can't stay still long enough to cast it."

Akeno's jaw dropped. After all these years, how had nobody noticed such a glaring weakness?

"All I had to do was keep you moving long enough to power up my Capacitor Shot. It's a pretty powerful attack - as I'm sure you can attest to," Xyleena said with a playful nudge that Akeno did not appreciate. "That's why I fired so many arrows at the walls; I thank you for doing such a good job at clearing my lines of fire until I was done."

Finally Akeno reached the limit of the taunting she was going to take. "You bitch..." she seethed, slapping Xyleena clean across the face.

Xyleena's eyes bulged as she reached up to her now blazing cheek, and she turned to see the fury boiling in Akeno's eyes. She said nothing, simply bursting out into a fit of laughter, causing Akeno to storm out of the cage. She sauntered to her own gate, where Arceus was waiting with another bottle.

**_{{That was fun,}}_** she said, not entirely mockingly. **_{{We'll definitely have to do that again sometime.}}_**

**_{{I have no doubt about that,}}_** Arceus ceded before turning her attention back to the center of the cage, where Kiba stood waiting. Arceus opened her mouth to introduce her next combatant, but suddenly stopped. Her eyes narrowed for a moment, then she broke out into the biggest grin imaginable. "Lady Gremory, I've just had an absolutely marvelous idea," she said.

"If it doesn't involve returning my Bishops to me right this instant, I'm not interested," Rias sneered.

"Nope, not quite. What I have in mind is far more entertaining. It seems you have a pair of swordsmen on your team... as it happens, I do as well. Why don't we make the next round a two-on-two match, winner take all?"

"No thanks."

"Are you sure? You're already down by a score of 2-0... this is the perfect opportunity to tie things up."

Xenovia stepped up. "Rias, I know you don't like her or this game she's playing. But her intentions haven't been purely malicious so far. At the very least, I think we can safely trust her. Please let me team up with Kiba. We can beat whatever she throws at us."

"All right," Rias relented.

"Thank you. Issei?"

"You got it... ASCALON!"

**[[BLADE!]]** Ascalon the Dragonslayer materialized and Issei passed it off to Xenovia. Arceus panicked momentarily at this development; none of her recon had indicated such a powerful weapon being in the hands of the Gremory household. She quickly steeled herself, realizing she couldn't back out; she could only hope her children were capable of victory using their natural talents.

"Alexzastros. Alexstrazsa."

The middle plinth on each side of the throne began to lower. On the left was a massive, hulking giant of a man whose black skin twisted and grew into a full suit of composite plate armor as he strode into the cage. The armor was white with bronze trim, with black fists stamped in various places. The most intimidating thing about him, however, was the enormous claymore sword strapped to his back. The other housed a small yet muscular girl, who hopped, spun and bounced into the cage in a blue ninja leotard. She had two short swords strapped to her back, and a black fist tattooed on each of her bare upper arms. They faced their adversaries and bowed respectfully.

The giant spoke first: "I am Alexzastros. I'm looking forward to an honorable fight. Let the strongest blades win." He drew his claymore and held it with one hand as he took up his fighting stance.

The ninja then introduced herself. "I'm Alexstrazsa. May our battle be just, and let the swiftest blades win." She gripped both of her swords but did not draw them.

Kiba and Xenovia settled into their stances and introduced themselves. "We are Knights in the service of Rias Gremory. May the best team win."

Arceus snapped both gates shut and issued one last command:

**"ROUND 3 - FIGHT!"**


End file.
